Here is a real treat for lovers of French “grand opera” at its most ostentatious.

The operas of Giacomo Meyerbeer (1791-1864), especially those composed in collaboration with librettist Eugène Scribe, took Paris by storm in the mid 19th century giving the composer something of a rock-star status with the premier of each new spectacular production.

One need hardly say that to mount and do full justice to a work such as Le Prophète, as heard on these three SACDs, would be unthinkable for any opera house in these cash-strapped times. Fortunately on disc we can experience the music, if not the extravagant staging Meyerbeer envisaged, thanks to this marvellous performance recorded live in concert at the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence in 2023. This was a co-production with Palzzetto Bru Zane whose admirable vocation is the rediscovery and international promotion of the French musical heritage of the long nineteenth century (1780-1920).

The story, based on historical fact, concerns an innkeeper, John of Leyden, who torn between love for his fiancée (Berthe) and his mother (Fidès) abandons both to become a prophet of the Anabaptists in order to take righteous revenge for past wrongs and prevent new ones. Inevitably it all goes badly wrong and eventually he and all the main characters perish in a huge conflagration in the Münster palace.

The three leading roles are splendidly sung by John Osborn as Jean the eponymous hero, Mané Galoyan as Berthe and Elizabeth DeShong as Fidès, a role originally assigned to the legendary mezzo- soprano Pauline Viardot who sang it over 200 times during her career.

Mark Elder’s urgent conducting of the score and the superfine playing of the LSO ensures there are no longueurs throughout the opera’s five acts. The work is full of stirring choruses, magnificently delivered here by the Lyon Opera Chorus, while the music of the obligatory ballet in Act III, one that took place on a frozen lake with the dancers on roller skates, is performed with elegance and typical LSO flare.

The excellent sound on this 5.1 multi-channel SACD is a tribute to the Classic Sound team working in the fine acoustic of the Grand Théâter de Provence. The DSD256fs recording has considerable atmosphere and spaciousness, and those listening in multi-channel will notice more use of the rear channels than is often the case. Voices are well integrated into the sound picture, and what a pleasure it is to hear the LSO freed from the confines of London’s Barbican Hall revelling in this music.

The three disc boxed set includes a lavish 166 page booklet that provides an excellent synopsis of the opera, artist biographies and, most importantly, a full French/English libretto.

Those unfamiliar with French grand opera and curious to experience it should investigate this thrilling release without delay.

Copyright © 2024 Graham Williams and HRAudio.net

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